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Las Vegas Gladiators game notes

February 24, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Las Vegas Gladiators News Release


Date: Sunday, February 29, 2004
Kickoff: 12:00 PM PT
Site: Thomas & Mack Center (Las Vegas, NV)
Officials: Referee: Craig Wrolstad, Umpire: Rick Lowe, Head Linesman: Gary Cavaletto, Line Judge: Rusty Baynes, Back Judge: Scott Helverson

THE GAME CAN BE SEEN...
On NBC Sports with Pat Spurduto and Bill Weber handling the call and KVBC-TV's Mitch Roberts on the sidelines.


THE GAME CAN BE HEARD...
On ESPN Radio 920 in Las Vegas with Andrew Siciliano handling play-by-play and Mike Pritchard with color commentary.


THE SERIES – GLADIATORS VS. VOODOO

This will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

The Gladiators are looking to even their record at .500 and win their second straight.

If the Gladiators win, it would...
· Give Las Vegas a 1-0 record against the VooDoo
· Give Las Vegas a 2-2 overall record
· Give Las Vegas a 1-1 home record

GLADIATORS VS. VOODOO
BY THE NUMBERS

Statistical GLADIATORS VOODOO
Category (2004 Per Game) Rank Stat Rank Stat
Total Offense 3 275.3 13 250.3
Rushing Offense 12 14.3 5 28.7
Passing Offense 3 261.0 14 221.7
Total Defense 3 206.7 7 247.3
Rushing Defense 3 8.3 14 27.0
Passing Defense 5 198.3 7 220.3
Scoring Offense 9 49.3 12 46.0
Scoring Defense 2 39.6 4 42.0

GLADIATORS LAST WEEK

GLADIATORS GET IN WIN COLUMN BY DISMANTALING RAMPAGE

Grand Rapids, MI, February 22, 2004 – Clint Dolezel made a triumphant return to Grand Rapids as the Las Vegas Gladiators dominated the Grand Rapids Rampage 51-14 Sunday at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI. Dolezel, the Baby Ruth Offensive Player of the Game, threw for 222 yards and five touchdowns while playing only three quarters.

The Gladiators held the Rampage scoreless in the first half as they ran up a 31-0 lead, forcing one fumble, intercepting a pass and holding the Rampage on downs in their first five possessions. It was the first time the Gladiators have held an opponent scoreless for a half.

Dolezel spread the ball around, throwing to seven different receivers as the Gladiators improved to 1-2 on the season. Dolezel also reached a milestone as he became only the fourth player in AFL history to throw for more than 25,000 yards. He needed 57 yards coming into the game to reach the mark.

Army Ironman of the Game Dennison Robinson led the Gladiators on both sides of the ball as he had four receptions for 78 yards and two touchdowns on offense and four tackles on defense. The Gladiators were led defensively by ADT Defensive Player of the Game TJ Hill, who recorded 12 tackles and three pass breakups and by Marvin Taylor who intercepted two passes.

Terrill Shaw, who starred with Dolezel for the Rampage for the last three seasons, had seven catches for 79 yards for the Gladiators.

With his five touchdown passes, Dolezel now has 499 for his career, one away from becoming only the fourth quarterback in the AFL to reach 500.

For Grand Rapids, Robert Hall, who started at quarterback was 10-18 for 86 yards and one interception before being replaced by Anthony Buich.

GLADIATORS NEXT WEEK

The Gladiators will hit the road as they travel to face the Georgia Force on Sunday, March 7. Kickoff is scheduled for 9 AM PT and the game can be seen on NBC.

THE COACHES


Frank Haege (Third Season 18-15, 0-2 in playoffs)

The Las Vegas Gladiators third-year head coach can look back upon his first two seasons in the AFL and boast about his wide array of accomplishments. Haege led the Gladiators to the fourth-best record in the AFL and their first-ever playoff berth in franchise history in 2002.

The 2003 season was the first for the Gladiators in Las Vegas and Haege led them to a second consecutive playoff appearance and an 8-8 record.

In 2002 the Gladiators 9-5 record and first place finish in the Eastern Division of the National Conference was the biggest turnaround in AFL history. The Gladiators finished the 2002 regular season with seven more victories than the previous season.

Haege was named the second head coach of the New Jersey Gladiators on August 23, 2001. Haege brought with him six players and an assistant coach from the Steamwheelers.

Previously, he spent two years as the head coach and director of football operations with the Quad City Steamwheelers (af2) in 2000 and 2001. Haege posted a remarkable 37-1 record, including an undefeated 2000 season.

Haege is in his tenth season in the Arena Football League.

Mike Nue (Third Season, 9-8 record, 1-2 in playoffs)

On June 17, 2003, the New Orleans VooDoo took one of the first and biggest steps in franchise history when they named Mike Neu Head Coach. Neu, a former college and professional quarterback and five-year Arena coaching veteran, comes to the VooDoo after serving as the head coach of the AFL Carolina Cobras in 2002.

In 2002, Neu guided the Cobras to a club-record 5-2 record on the road and their second-straight postseason berth. Carolina also posted the first playoff victory in club history (a 72-64 win at Grand Rapids) last season as the club featured the AFL s fourth-ranked defense.

As offensive coordinator in 2001 before being promoted to head coach, the Cobras averaged over 56 points a game (fifth in the league) and finished 7-7, improving from a 3-13 record the year before.

Prior to joining Carolina, Neu served as Head Coach and Director of Football Operations for the Augusta Stallions of AFL2 in 2000. He had a stunning rookie season as a head coach, leading the Stallions to a 14-4 record and the American Conference title. Augusta finished in the top four in every major offensive and defensive category and Neu was named the Coach of the Year.

His Arena coaching career started in 1998, when Neu served as quarterbacks coach for the Kats and handled all play-calling responsibilities for the offense. The next year he was promoted to offensive coordinator and the Kats made their third-straight playoff appearance.

GLADIATORS' NOTES AND TRENDS


What Once Was
The VooDoo's OL/DL Tony Henderson played in one game for the Gladiators last season and recorded one solo tackle. Also, DS Chris Pointer will be facing the Gladiators for the first time since playing for the New Jersey Gladiators in 2002. He played in limited action and had one assisted tackle during his stint with the team.

C-Note
In the third game of 2004, Gladiators' kicker Daron Alcorn was able to convert his first field goal of the season and his 100th of his career. On the season, he is 19-of-21 on extra points and 1-of-3 on field goals to total 22 points kicking on the season. Alcorn moved up in the record book's as he ranks third all-time in points kicked in his career with 771 behind only Mike Black (1,221) and former Gladiator Steve Videtich (1,020).

Holding It Down
The Gladiators had the most outstanding defensive performance in the team's history last Sunday, holding the Grand Rapids Rampage to only 14 points. The previous mark was 20 on May 11, 2001 against the Detroit Fury (57-20).

Top Of The Hill
T.J. Hill started against the Rampage for the first time this season at the defensive specialist position and sparkled. He was half a tackle away from tying a team-record in tackles set by Damon Mason last season with 12.5 against the Buffalo Destroyers on May 18. Hill was named the ADT Defensive Player of the Game for the first time in his two-year career. On the season, he has totaled a team-high 19 tackles.

Ball Control
Four turnovers in a game usually does not help a team towards a victory in the AFL and that proved true for Grand Rapids last week as they had two fumbles lost and threw two interceptions. Marvin Taylor picked off both passes (now tied for league lead) and Jeremy Wilkinson and Frank Carter recovered the fumbles.

Not So Offensive If You Ask Me
Shutting down the opposing offensive specialist does not happen very often, yet the Gladiators keep doing it. In Colorado, Damian Harrell only had four receptions for 42 yards and two touchdowns. In week two against the Avengers, Chris Jackson had six receptions for only 35 yards and two touchdowns and last Sunday vs. the Rampage, Steve Smith had six receptions for 37 yards and no touchdowns.

Hit Me Baby One More Time
Clint Dolezel bypassed the 25,000 yards passing mark last week with 222 yards passing in only three quarters of action to become just the fourth player in AFL-history to reach the milestone (Aaron Garcia, Shedrick Robinson and Andy Kelly). He also threw five touchdown passes to bring his career total one shy of 500.

Pushing Three-Bills
Following his second seven reception game for the season, Terrill Shaw finds himself two shy of reaching the 300 reception plateau. On the season, he has caught 22 passes for 298 yards and four touchdowns.



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from February 24, 2004


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